When talking to people about fishing I get excited and passionate like most of us do! But when I talk to people about lake trout, watch out, my excitement is thru the roof! I can’t help but to be fascinated by this specie, I become a totally different person when I get in the lake trout mode, almost like a hockey player gets during game 7 of the Stanley cup playoffs, determination. For those who know me, this isn’t new to them, but for those who are reading this and thinking, is this guy nuts, I have to say yes I am!

I wrote an article on downrigging basics a while back and I had a hard time writing that article without talking about lake trout because it’s what I do so I am super pumped to share with you one of the biggest success I have had fishing for big Larry’s! For those of you who don’t know, Larry is what we call Lake Trout!

If I told you to bounce bottom for lakers, you would probably say, sure no problem, but if I told you to bounce bottom for lakers using your downriggers, you would say, no way dude! Settle down, I am here to tell you that there is a safe and successful way to do it without breaking or losing expensive gear!

Step 1, the set up.

Whether you are using electric or manual downriggers, this method works with both. Make sure you have some good steel downrigger cable spooled on your downrigger, I use 250 pound steel cable. Next, you will need a snubber, people use these for dipsey divers when fishing steel line to basically brace the impact of a fish hitting it since steel line doesn’t have any stretch, no different for downrigger cable. Attach your snubber to your downrigger and then attach your downrigger ball to that. You must use round downrigger balls for this method, the fish shaped ones will not work good. As far as weight, I always start with an 8 pound weight and move up from there depending on the water conditions or the depths I am fishing.

Step 2, release clip.

Most people will have their release clip attached to the ball, instead, I use a stacker clip and attach it just above the snubber on the downrigger cable, this will help ensure nothing gets caught on your lure, except the fish of course! I like to have my leads pretty tight to the ball, usually 10 -15 feet and sometimes a little closer but never more as I will explain soon. It’s important to use a quality release clip like *Scotty release clip, they are great for this type of fishing, make sure it is nice and tight on the clip, I always pinch it tight to make sure it is secure.

Step 3, the lure.

Probably the second most important step is lure choice. I have tried many combos and lures but this is truly the best combo in my opinion. It’s called peanuts and cow bell! Some may have heard of it before and others are really confused at the moment. This method starts with laker trolls or gang trolls, however you want to call them, that is your attractant, your flash. Behind that, about 15-24 inches, I have a spin and glow or wobble troll, this is your lure, this is what the fish bites. My go to is a blue fire tiger in size 00 from Yakima Baits, you can get them pre rigged but I tie my own. I tie it on a 25 pound test fluorocarbon leader with a quality treble or single Mustad hook. Single hooks seem to be more effective on most days but when I lose a fish half way up, I switch it to a treble.

As far as rod choice, well the options are not limited, I use an 8 foot, medium heavy rod with a line counter reel. This rod is spooled with 25 pound Big Game line. You typically would not use a line counter reel for downrigging but for me, it helps me dial down the perfect combination to catching these giant lake trout.

Last step.

Send your combo down to the bottom. Once you hit bottom, I always let out an extra 10 feet of downrigger cable. For example, I’m fishing in 80 feet of water, my downrigger counter will read 90-95 feet. This allows the ball to drag and bounce off bottom and create some disturbance, I call it the dinner bell! Make sure your rod is set in the rod holder and is bent in half with no slack line left, set your drag and watch your rod bounce with the bottom. If you see your rod bounce on a rhythmic pace it will mean that you are dialed in perfect. I keep my speed at around 1.6 to 2.0 MPH, my sweet spot is 1.7! I always drive in an S pattern to help the lures speed up and slow down to help me determine how fast these fish want it. Always pay attention to the small details once you get a fish. Take a picture of your catch, release it and repeat the process until your arms fall off!!

Get out there, have fun and catch yourself a bunch of Larry’s during those beautiful summer months!

When fishing a big body of water, you often feel intimidated and somewhat afraid, don’t feel bad, those were my emotions too! The mistake most people do is look at a map of the whole lake and start planning the spots you want to hit, there is nothing wrong with that at all, in fact that’s what we should all do, but in reality, most of us try to do too much at once. Instead of looking at the whole lake, cut it into pieces, just like a pie! Concentrate on a certain area, learn it, fish it and master it!

Downrigging can be scary for some, and for others, they call it “the lazy man fishing” I call it “Strategic Fishing”! Why is downrigging so fun? I’m glad you asked! All thru the summer I spend time trolling Lake Simcoe in search of big lake trout, but what I am also doing is using this time to find unmarked shoals, humps and potential jigging areas for summer and winter. As much as we think the lakes are well mapped and we can see every shoal or hump from a smartphone sitting on the couch eating pie, you can always find unmarked areas, trust me, I have found a few in my days and they still produce fish to this day! As much as we like to think we know the lakes like the back of our hand, there will always be that one spot that you found that no one knows about, or at least no one else talks about, in that case, it’s still your secret spot!

The gear:

In today’s market, we have options, and plenty of them. No need to go out and break the bank on downrigging equipment, there are plenty of cost effective ways to get set up which I will share with you. Till this day, I still run a couple of manual downriggers on my boat, that’s right, the old hand crank ones! Of course I would love some electric ones but it’s not in my budget at the moment and besides, electric downriggers do not catch more fish, trust me! Make sure when you find your downriggers that you check the cable for any frays or kinks, if you find any, replace the cable right away. What you will need next are some downrigger weights, the ball that attaches to the downrigger to get your lures to the desired depths you are fishing. The weight of the balls depend on the depths you are fishing, I fish between 50 and 100 feet of water so I don’t use anything less than an 8 pound weight, I do have 10 and 12 pound ones for those windy days but getting yourself an 8 pound ball will work for you in most conditions and lakes!

At the end of your downrigging weight, you will have a release clip, this is where you will attach your main fishing line too. Now, here’s where some people get confused and the most common question I get. How much lead, or line do you put out before attaching your line to the release clip? I have no right or wrong answer for you because that all depends on the day, fish species you are targeting and lure that you are using. Some days I let out 10 feet of line and other days I will let out 40 feet of line, it’s a big difference, I know, but a general rule, start around 10-15 feet and then experiment different lengths as the day goes by.

Once you find your desired length, put your rod on free spool or loosen the drag to allow your line to be let out freely as you lower the downrigger. Once you have reached your depth, reel up any slack line and set your drag. I like my drag to be tight enough that your line won’t get let out as you troll. As far as what rod to use, obviously downrigging rods are the way to go but if you don’t have any it’s ok! Doesn’t mean you can’t go fishing. A medium heavy rod will work just as good, even a spinning reel will work for you. Bait casting or open face reel is ideal for downrigging.

Trolling speeds also vary based on your target specie, if you are fishing for lake trout, I troll at speeds from 1.5 to 2.0 mph, if I am fishing for salmon, I will troll anywhere from 2.5 to 3.5 mph. Always check your bait beside your boat before attaching it to the downrigger to make sure it is running properly.

A quick tip for you as you troll around, drive in an S pattern, this will allow your baits to speed up and slow down depending on your turn, always pay attention when a fish hits, if you got a fish on a turn, then most likely you need to fine tune your speed to a little faster or slower depending on the direction of your turn. Every little detail matters when you are downrigging. Observe, pay attention and repeat!

As you experience downrigging, you will notice that it’s actually pretty fun, especially when success finds you! Don’t be afraid to give it a go, they make downriggers for any size boat big or small.

My 2 biggest tips I give to anglers getting into downrigging are, remember your line lead, that’s the amount of line you let out behind the ball. And for my second tip, it’s speed, don’t be afraid to speed up and slow down, you will be shocked at the amount of fish you will get by doing this! And pay attention to the small details, ok that was 3 tips! Get out there and give downrigging a go, you won’t be disappointed!

Well it’s that time of the year again. The boats are put away for the winter as the ice starts to form.

With Christmas around the corner, many of us are starting to think about what we would like for Christmas or are looking for gift ideas for friends or family.

If you are anything like the Exist To Fish Staff, you probably lost a few baits this year.

We are all excited about new and existing fishing product’s that we have not had an opportunity to purchase or test out. They just were not in your budget at the time or perhaps you are thinking about trying a new lure this winter or in 2016!!

I asked the Staff at Exist to Fish what they where going to ask Santa for this year.

Here are the top picks on their wish list!

Dean Schenk : “On my Xmas wish list would be a pair of Smith Backdrop sunglasses to protect my eyes when on the water and ice”.

SMITH Backdrop

Product Features:

A perfect medium-sized complement to the Touchstone, the Backdrop incorporates the same great features like stainless steel spring hinges and megol contact surfaces at the nose and temple tips. ChromaPop™ polarized lenses provide the highest level of enhanced color and clarity, or choose Techlite glass lenses for unparalleled optics and scratch resistance.

“Also a tube of liquid mayhem walleye attractant in my stocking as I use it on the hard water all winter”.

Liquid Mayhem

​Product Features:

Made with real minnows in a super concentrated form. Contains natural baitfish enzymes infused with powerful amino acids and other bite stimulants

formulated to target a fishes olfactory glands and trigger big strikes. Fish hold on to artificial bait longer meaning more hooks ups and more fish in the boat

No mess formula stays on the bait, not in the boat. Super concentrated. A tiny amount goes a long way.

Mike Lamoureux : “I would like the EzCam post. I would love to have the EzCam mounted to my boat to give me the extra camera angle for my fishing videos with my Go Pro!”

EzCam Post

​

Product Features:

The EzCam Post is the worlds PREMIER universal camera mount. It will work with any camera, smartphone, and/or camera accessory. It will secure to any object up to 3” in diameter and telescopes from 27” to 6’ in height. Not only will you be able to capture stunning pictures and videos, it will protect your camera from falling over. Perfect for use in boats by attaching to seat pedestals, simple and quick to set-up and use. The mounting plate has a reversible thread, 1/4″-20 and 3/8″-16 like any good tripod or monopod, so you can be sure any camera or accessory can be mounted to it.

Chris Huskilson : “I would like a underwater fishing camera!! I can think of a million different situations where I would use this! Having the ability to mark fish on my graph and drop a camera down to identify the species would be a huge benefit! This Camera, from Pyle, looks incredible! And is very reasonably priced in comparison to other models out there.”

Jamie Wilson: “One item I truly want from Santa this year is, without a doubt, several packs of Lake Fork Trophy Lures’ “Live Magic Shads”This segmented plastic swimbait has an amazing and very unique action, along with exceptional durability and a great line of colors. With the ice fishing season just around the corner I have to start gearing up so I’m ready for big, hungry Lake Trout. Then when summer comes, there’s nothing better than a swimbait to fire up big Bass. So come on Santa I’ve been a good boy this year, a couple in every color in both 3.5″ and 4″, regular and boot tail please! P.S- come down from the North Pole anytime and I’ll put you on some big fish!”

Alex Meletis: “I would absolutely like my go to bait weather it be trolling or casting for both muskies and pike. The Shallow Invader from Musky Innovations They provide a color chart, so any pattern is possible. Why I want these is because I know they catch fish in all conditions and are a reliable and durable bait.”

Shallow Invader

Product Features:

LURE DESCRIPTION: TheShallow Invaderis one of the most innovative shallow crankbaits on the market today. This “hybrid” lure combines a hard plastic crankbait head with a hand-poured, soft plastic action body and tail. This knockout combination creates incredible serpentine action that drives large gamefish crazy. The tail is replaceable. If it gets chewed up or you want to change colors, changing it is a snap. Pull the tail straight back until it pulls off the tail post. Push your new tail on the post until the rib on the back of the head is seated on the ridge in the tail. You can add some super glue for an even stronger hold.

LURE SPECIFICATIONS: TheShallow Invaderis 9″ long and is about 2 oz. It has extra strong 3/0 wide gap hooks for best hook-ups. It comes in many different fish catching colors for all your angling needs. TheShallow Invaderruns 2-4 feet and is a lethal twitch bait.

HOW TO FISH THE INVADER: Use theShallow Invaderin all shallow crankbait/twitchbait situations. Cast or troll on shallow flats, rocky points, mid lake reefs, and over the tops of weedbeds. TheShallow Invadercan be used as a very effective twitch bait. A good technique is to pause several times in mid retrieve. Because the lure floats when stopped, it is very effective in the weeds. It imitates an injured bait fish often drawing strikes from even fickle gamefish.

Shelley Langley: “The best and most functional item under her Christmas tree would be an Eclipse UPF 50+ shirt to protect my skin from the sun while fishing.”

​Keep an eye on Eclipse for an exciting new product launch coming soon.

Product Features:

Eclipse is a Canadian company offering UPF 50+ clothing to protect against the sun’s harmful rays. After being cleared of skin cancer back in January of 2014, I decided to protect myself against further damage by creating a line of apparel that offers UPF 50+ with high quality fabric. Eclipse products are Made in Canada and offer protection through the fabric and not a chemical coating. The current product line is a generous size that accommodates both men and women that want protection from the sun while outdoors. More products including long sleeves will be available soon.​

Colin Booth: “I have had my eye on Eco Pro Tungsten for some time now and would love to add some of their products to my arsenal. I love to flip plastics so their tungsten bullet weights are an easy pick for me!”

David Reid: “I would like nothing more than some more Rod Sox. With their proprietary unique feature, a snag proof, hook resistant rubber type mouth makes loading and unloading my rods quick and easy.”

Rod Sox

Product Features:

RodSox Features:

Breathable– Rod Sox can go on wet or dry equipment. The breathable mesh allows air to easily pass through allowing any moisture out and drying your rod and line.

Safety Tip– The hardened tip of our Rod Sox protects the last guide/tip of rod from the wear and tear of placing or removing rods from rod lockers or any type of storage.

Durable Tag– With the addition of a hang hole in the new, durable, rubber tag, rods can now be “hung up” for storage, a great and safe way to save room and keep your rod out of harm’s way laying or leaning elsewhere. After the Rod Sox is completely seated on the rod, a gently tug on the rubber “mouth” will “Lock” the Rod Sox in place, and it won’t slip off. When it’s time to go fishing, a simple push of the mouth upwards releases the “lock” and the Rod Sox will just slide right off.

Easy Identification– The hard tip is wrapped with a color tape indicating the length of the rod it fits so that you can easily tell your rods apart and know which Rod Sox go on what rod when ready for storage. (For Example: green tip tape is for a 6’6″ rod, while red tip = 7′ rod, etc…)

Tangle Free– Avoid the tangling of rods and line when carrying gear to and from the water.

Mesh Density– The Original Rod Sox have the densest mesh of any rod protector on the market. This makes them more durable over time, improves the protection of your rod, and allows a tighter weave for added safety of rod guides, especially microguides.

Improved Mouth– The new and improved pliable, rubber-type “mouth” on the bottom end of the Rod Sox seals the mesh from fraying or unrolling, as well as protects the rod paint from any scratching from open mesh. In addition, the rubber mouth provides about a 1 3’4″ protective barrier between the hook and the mesh to prevent lure hang-ups.

​

Since I only asked the Team for a couple of products that they would like to have, as I know their wish list would have been too long for this article longer, Please visithttp://existtofish.com/and check out our Product Reviews and Articles for more ideas.

From all of us at Exist To Fish Canada, Merry Christmas and may your Holiday season be joyous and safe.

As an angler, there are moments of excitement so glorious that you literally want to jump up and scream. I’ll tell you this, watching a lake trout chase your bait from upwards of one hundred plus feet of water on your sonar, and then ultimately hitting your offering like a freight train, is definitely one such moment.

Southern, central and northern Ontario hold a bevy of lakes where you can experience some of the most heart stopping action on the ice. One fine example is the hallowed grounds of the fourth largest body of water wholly within Ontario, Canada’s borders.

Lake Simcoe is the mecca for both lake trout and whitefish in central Ontario during the hard water season. This large seven hundred square kilometer expanse of varying depth and structure offers endless opportunities to hunt down either a fish of a lifetime, or some fine table fare. With an average depth of 40ft, and a maximum depth of 135ft, an angler can expect to spend a portion of their time figuring out the key depth and structure that either lake trout or whitefish are relating to.

Lake Trout

First off, herring, aka cisco are a lake trout’s main forage base. Now, obviously, if you can find schools of herring, you will ultimately find lake trout. Keep in mind that these schools of bait will move around so you’ll have to follow suit. To locate lake trout, good places to start are areas that have structure such as shoals, humps and main break lines/tight contours adjacent to deep water. A GPS mapping app for a phone or tablet is invaluable when locating these structures. Positioning on such areas will give you the ability to quickly experiment with different depths that lake trout may be keying on. This could be anywhere from 60ft-100+ft of water, so you should definitely keep an open mind.

Lake Simcoe local hot stick Colin Booth spends his time doing just that, so let’s pick his brain a bit. One key component to an angler’s success when searching for these often elusive fish is without a doubt, a portable sonar unit. Without one, you are fishing blind. Colin explains “I prefer the graph mode on theMarcum LX-7unit, as it gives me a history on how the fish are reacting to the presentation”.

As far as baits are concerned, you have to match the hatch. To mimic herring, a light colored swimbait rigged on a 1/2oz-1oz football or darter style jig head can’t be beat. Colin’s go-to choice for swimbaits is theBass Magnet Lures“Shift’r Shad” in a white or “glo” pattern. Other great options are theAngler’s Choice“Sniper Shad”, and theLake Fork Trophy Tackle“Live Magic Shad” which is a segmented style swimbait. As far as other color options, I’ve had success with chartreuse as well. When this presentation isn’t as effective, silver jigging spoons or lipless crankbaits will more than likely be the ticket. Colin’s choice for lipless cranks as of late is the Smartfish byKamooki Lures Ltd.“If you’ve haven’t seen this bait, you must check it out. It’s such a unique lipless style crank that is neutrally buoyant, yet is nose weighted so it stands up with a flaring action when it’s resting on bottom or suspended. My first laker of 2015 was caught on this cool bait in the herring pattern”. Another top bait choice is a good old 3-4” white tube. This is a deadly presentation that mimics an injured/dying baitfish which will provoke a feeding response in finicky, inactive fish.

Now, lake trout are triggered to strike when a baitfish freezes in fear momentarily, like a gazelle on the Serengeti, only to swim away in a panic. Colin explains “lakers love the chase. I start by dropping the bait to the bottom, jigging/bouncing it a few times to stir up silt to attract their attention. I then reel the bait up to about half the depth of the water column, at which point, I slowly swim the bait up and down a few times, let it fall back to the bottom and then I repeat”. 9 times out of 10, if you follow this method, a lake trout will either rise from the depths or it will just appear on the sonar and b-line it to the bait”. He continues, “Once this happens it’s a game of cat and mouse. Simply reel away from the laker provoking it to chase, if it turns away drop the bait back down and repeat the process until you trigger the fish to strike. It’s much like a video game, and really gets the blood pumping”.

His set-up of choice is a medium-heavy 28”-32” rod paired with a 2000-2500 series reel with a smooth drag to handle the long runs lake trout are known for, 15lbSuffix832 braid/10lb fluorocarbon leader round things out. For tubes, make sure your main line to leader connection is made with a swivel as tubes spiral and will ultimately cause line twist.

Whitefish

Lately, Colin has been targeting whitefish on shoals in 40-50ft of water. “We used to find them in very deep water but they seem to have adapted to, and begun to feed on gobies. This makes sense because whitefish are primarily bottom feeders, which in turn, makes gobies the perfect meal.”

Since gobies are on the menu, baits that mimic them such as brown tubes rigged to sit nose down are effective. “When schools of whitefish appear, very subtle lifts to get the tail moving is the preferred technique”. He continues, “Once you get the hang of it, you’ll have a blast when they make an appearance on the sonar”. Aside from the tubes, theKamooki Smartfishis a great choice as it will balance itself on bottom sitting tail up, along with the appeal of the rattles to attract their attention. Another choice is the “Twitch” byBass Magnet lureswhich usually is a drop shot style bait, but in this case, rigged onto a 1/2oz jig head. This alternate bait can be fished on bottom for whitefish, and often will incidentally turn bites from lake trout as well. Colin’s rod/reel/line combo is essentially the same set-up as utilized for lake trout, the only real difference being a lighter 6-8lb leader.

Lake Simcoe is very accessible and is surrounded by many attractions and amenities. Obviously it is quite large, with an ATV or snowmobile being ideal, they are not a must. When venturing out make sure to check reports on unsafe areas, and steer clear of dangerous pressure cracks. Head out with someone that knows the lake and take proper precautions by carrying safety gear and exercise common sense. Chasing fish around this fine fishery is unparalleled fun, but just don’t take any unnecessary risks doing so. Get out there and put the techniques that we discussed today to good use and you’ll be bitten by the bug just like I was. Trust me.